Sweet Disposition
by ihearttennant
Summary: Puck's mom wants him to date a Jewish girl. What starts as a convenient solution turns into love. But what happens when secrets are revealed that threaten to ruin everything? Puck/Rachel. R&R please as it's my first Glee fic.
1. Chapter 1

**As with many people around the globe, I am officially in love with Glee. And Noah Puckerman…and Finn Hudson *sigh*…but I digress. This is a small story (probably consisting of around 5 or so chapters, perhaps more depending on public opinion :D) about Puck and Rachel, who have temporarily taken the lead in my competition for "Favourite Couple on Glee" (Will and Emma are now second, followed closely by Finn and Rachel!). Spoilers up until "Takedown" as well as the Canadian Promo and the two sneak peeks, particularly the clip of Sweet Caroline *swoons*. This is my first story for this fandom, so please be kind and R and R!! :D **

**As per usual, I own nothing, despite wishing I did.**

_Chapter 1 – Expectations_

Noah Puckerman was sitting alongside his mother on their couch, waiting for the forthcoming lecture that she was going to give him. It was a regular occurrence in recent times; he was constantly failing (or rather, just not attempting) his assignments, and of course there were the many times that she was called into the school for his "pranks" – many of which included ice cold slushies. But this was different – she had caught him in bed with Santana, and his mother was in no way fond of the brunette cheerleader. Contrary to her belief, Puck didn't _like_ disappointing her – quite the opposite: he had taken care of her when his dad had split (taking a fairly large portion of their savings with him), and he continued to provide money for groceries and other bills. His mother sighed and turned towards him.

"Noah, I just don't know _why_ you keep bringing these terrible girls home. You deserve – and quite frankly can do - a lot better."

Okay. _So _not what he had expected to hear coming out of her mouth. Yelling, crying, the taking away of video gaming facilities…_that's_ what he had expected. Not dating advice. Not from his religiously Jewish mother.

"That Santana girl is _horrible_, Noah, just horrible. She is rude, and stuck up, and doesn't appreciate what a beautiful boy you are."

Puck was speechless – no-one had said anything this nice to him in a long time. He opened his mouth to say something, and his mother assumed that he was going to argue with her.

"Wait a minute, I'm not finished…Oh Noah, why can't you date a Jewish girl…she would respect you and your values –"

Puck gave a little internal laugh at this – his mother may be insanely religious, and he believed in God and all that, but he was in no way as religious as his mother was.

"- and I want you to try something for me. Please, _please_ try dating a nice Jewish girl. Please, for me?"

Puck sighed and bit his lip. He loved his mother, he really did, and he would do anything to make her happy, considering the amount of sadness she had in her life. But dating someone just because they were Jewish? That sounded a little extreme to him. Just as he was about to tell her that she could "take away his X-Box, but not his choice in women", he looked up at her and saw the sad look in her eyes. She had already had so many horrible romantic experiences in her life…first his father, then her long-term boyfriend Roy who had begun to beat her up before she called the police on him, and then there were what Puck called the "3 date wonders". His mother would date a man approximately three times, and then he was gone. Puck saw the look in her eyes and just knew that he would not be able to refuse her.

"Mom – I'll _try_…I'll try to find a nice, Jewish, girl to date, OK? But I can't promise anything!"

Her face lit up and she jumped up from the couch.

"Oh, Noah, you won't regret it! I know some lovely girls –"

"No, Mom, no set-ups! If I'm going to do this, I'll do it _my way_!"

"Of course, sweet heart, of course…I'm sorry…now, how about I go and make us some dinner, OK?"

She kissed him on his forehead and walked into their kitchen. Puck exhaled and lay back on the couch. Why, oh why, did he have a horrible feeling that he was going to regret this decision?

Puck was sitting in the auditorium watching Mr Schuster trying to teach Mike and Brittany the choreography for their new number for the school assembly. Over by the piano, Rachel Berry was helping Finn with his singing and, as Puck scanned the room, he could see Quinn glaring at the two, whispering angrily to Santana. Puck understood the jealousy – Finn clearly had feelings for the crazy Berry chick, and was (apparently) completely oblivious to how lucky he was to have Quinn, the beautiful, pregnant cheerleader who Puck had been in love with – or in _lust _with – since the fifth grade. The night that Puck had spent with Quinn had not been everything he had hoped – sure, he managed to sleep with her, but she was drunk and he felt extremely guilty after they had finished. Ever since he had found out that Quinn was pregnant, Puck had been trying to win her over. He really did want to be a good father to his baby, and had vowed when his dad had left that he would not turn out the same way. But Puck could also see how much Quinn loved Finn – sweet, innocent, _dumb_ Finn – and Puck knew a losing battle when he saw one. So, he sucked it up, and tried to keep his raging green eyed monster at bay.

"Alright guys, let's leave it there for today. I want everyone to be back here at 3 o'clock sharp tomorrow afternoon, we still have so much work to do before the assembly! See you all tomorrow".

Mr Schuster collected the sheet music and walked out of the room with the rest of the members of the Glee club. Quinn went over and pulled Finn away from Rachel. Puck noticed the fleeting look of sadness in Rachel's eyes – but it was gone before he knew it. That's when he noticed it – the small, silver Star of David on Rachel's chest. Of course! He had completely forgotten that she was Jewish. Not that he knew too much about Rachel Berry – other than she was a complete weirdo who had rejected him in eighth grade when he had asked her out in front of the entire class – a move which had seen her with a slushie down the front of her shirt every day since their freshman year. She talked _way _too much for her own good, and used many large words that Puck didn't know existed, and she was bossy, argumentative and just plain annoying. But she was pretty hot – those small skirts would turn any man on and she wore many a form fitting sweater that showed of her relatively nice boobs. And, for the first time, Puck noticed that she had really nice brown eyes. What the hell – he was a stud – if he was seen with Rachel Berry she would instantly become cool, and she was Jewish so that would keep his mother happy. So it was a win-win for both of them. He walked over to the piano, where she was sorting out sheet music and putting it into her bag.

"Hey Berry."

She seemed to freeze for a split second when she heard his voice, and then stood up tall and whipped around to face him, disdain in her eyes.

"Hello Noah. Where's the slushie?"

Puck held up his hands in mock surrender.

"I come un-armed. I was just wondering how you were."

Rachel laughed coldly, a laugh which caught Puck by surprise.

"_You_ were wondering how_ I_ was? That's rich."

Puck had fully expected this kind of resistance. He had been making her high school life pretty much a living hell.

"Really, Berry, I was. I'm not the heartless man you believe me to be."

"Oh no Noah, you're not heartless. Spineless and gutless maybe… but _never _heartless."

"Okay, so maybe you're right Berry. Maybe I did have an ulterior motive to coming to talk to you."

"I thought so. So what is it, Noah? Are you going to comment on my quote "squished pig face" as the Cheerio's so sensitively called it last week? Or how about my "uptight virgin dress code"? Or is it something completely different entirely? Lord knows I love some variety in my life."

Puck had never heard Rachel be so sarcastic. Normally she would have used massive words and stormed out by now. She must _really _hate him. In that case, this might not be as easy as previously thought.

"Berry, I'm shocked that you would think I would say something like that about you!"

She shot him a dark look.

"Alright Berry, the real reason I came over here is because I was wondering if you, you know, wanted to see a movie with me sometime…you know, like a date."

Rachel stared at him. The silence was so intense Puck thought for a split second that he had gone deaf. Then, Rachel let out a cold laugh.

"_You _want to go out with _me?_ On a date? Ha! That is the single most ridiculous thing I have ever heard, Noah. Do you really think that I would want to go out anywhere with you, after you have made my high school social life non-existent? After you have thrown a slushie in my face every day for the past year? You are crazy if you think I trust you enough to go believe anything you say. Goodbye, Noah."

She turned and headed for the door. Puck knew that this was his window of opportunity.

"If I can prove to you that I am being sincere, will you go on a date with me? If I prove to you that you can trust me and believe what I say?"

That stopped Rachel in her tracks, as he knew it would. There was a silence that seemed to last for ages.

"Yes."

With that one word, she left the auditorium. With that one word, Puck knew that he would be able to woo Rachel Berry.

The next day, Rachel was putting her books in her locker before class. She closed the door, and turned to see Noah Puckerman walking down the hallway with one of his football buddies, slushie in hand. It looked like grape flavour. At least it was her favourite.

The events of yesterday afternoon had been like a dream. Had he really asked her out? Had he really smiled that knee-weakening smile at her? She had secretly always thought that Noah was extremely good looking, but his horrible personality had made her turn him down when he had asked her out. She remembered seeing that look of hurt and disappointment in his eyes when she had said no, and she immediately regretted her decision. And she had payed for it, everyday since, with a slushie to the face.

Puck and his friend got closer and Rachel braced herself for the ice-cold beverage that was about to hit her square in the face. Puck stopped in front of her, and she noticed his toned body underneath his tight shirt, and her stomach did a little flip. Even his Mohawk was gorgeous. She looked him in the eyes and waited for the slushie to hit her face.

"Hey Rach."

Rachel was stunned. She stood with her mouth wide open like a fish as she watched Puck take a sip of the Grape slushie, throw the container in the bin, flash her one of his beautiful smiles, and continue walking down the hallway. It was the first day in an entire year when Rachel did not have to make a trip to the dry cleaners. It was also the first day in a long time that she was genuinely speechless.

**A.N. – So there was chapter one! The title was based on the song **_**Expectations**_** by Cut off Your Hands, a brilliant band that I recommend everyone listen to. Seriously, go out and get their music…NOW! :D Please review; I want as many comments/suggestions/questions as possible so that I can make this story better :D **

**IHeartTennant **

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	2. We fight for love, and never fall

**A.N. – Can I just say that I love you all?! Thanks for the reviews everyone! Good to see people like the concept, and thanks also for the constructive criticism. This week's title is a song called **_**It's a War **_**by the Dukes of Windsor, another AMAZING band whom I recommend to everyone. Once again, I own nothing; please R and R again :D **

**P.S. Spoilers (well, what I assumed from the two promos) for 1x08 "Mash-up" and of course for the Sweet Caroline clip.**

**IHeartTennant.**

_Chapter 2: We fight for love, and never fall._

It had been nearly two weeks since Puck had asked Rachel out, and it had been two weeks since he last threw a slushie in her face. He knew that it would at least prove that he was changing and would help gain her trust. Puck's mom had nearly cried with joy when he had told her about Rachel, and immediately asked when she would be coming over for dinner. But it was _way_ too early to be thinking about that. Sure, he and Rachel were talking now but he still had a way to go yet.

He was sitting in Glee club one day, listening to Mr. Schue talking about chords and something else when it hit him: music. The way to woo Rachel Berry was with music. He couldn't believe that he didn't think of that before – she was completely nuts about anything to do with music, and surely a serenade would make her want to jump him right then and there. Puck couldn't believe that he had been so stupid – because, contrary to popular belief, he wasn't stupid. He could get really great grades…if he tried.

Mr Schue continued talking for what seemed like hours and then everyone around him started getting up and putting their books away. Puck looked over at Finn sitting beside him, who had a strange look on his face.

"What?"

"Are you OK man? You seem a little…distracted…"

Finn shifted his gaze to where Puck was just looking. They both looked at the now empty seat that was previously occupied by Rachel Berry. _Oh, Crap_ Puck thought. He had been sub-consciously staring at Rachel during Glee practice. Probably drooling, too. _And_ Finn had noticed. Puck quickly went into damage control.

"Yeah, man, I'm fine…I just…uh didn't get much sleep last night."

It was true. He had kept waking up in a cold sweat. But for the life of him, Puck could not remember what it was he had been dreaming about.

"Huh…if you're sure that's all it is…"

Finn, clearly still sensing that something was up, looked over at Rachel, who was talking loudly to Mr Schue about their mash up for Coach Tanaka and Miss Pillsbury's wedding dance, which the Glee cast was asked to sing for. Quinn must have seen Finn looking at Rachel, and screeched his name across the room, gesturing for him to follow her.

"Listen man, I gotta go…I'll see you at practice…"

Finn grabbed his bag and followed Quinn out of the room. Rachel finished talking to Mr Schue, grabbed her bag and headed after him. Puck stuffed his music into his bag, waved a quick goodbye to Mr Schue and followed her. Damn, she could walk fast.

"Hey Berry! Wait up! Rachel!"

She finally turned around at the end of the hallway, and he gave himself a mental high-five when he saw the smile break out onto her face.

"Hello, Noah. How are you? Great job in practice today."

"Thanks Berry. You weren't too bad yourself!"

Rachel began to blush. Cue mental high-five number two.

"Well thankyou, Noah, that's very sweet of you."

Their relationship had improved remarkably in the past two weeks. They were talking a lot now, and Rachel's popularity had risen slightly (not that she would admit that it mattered to her). Puck had also found himself actually _enjoying _her company. Maybe this dating high school girls business wasn't so bad after all…

"So, Berry, I was wondering…are we going out on that date anytime soon?"

Rachel giggled. Mental high-five number three. God he was good.

"Come on Noah, we have discussed this. Let's just be friends for a while and see how that goes, alright?"

The bell rang and Rachel almost jumped out of her skin.

"Oh no! I'm late for history! I'll see you in Glee practice tomorrow, alright Noah? Goodbye!"

She flashed him a smile and ran off down the hallway. Puck smiled to himself and walked off in the opposite direction.

Puck had just finished football practice and was putting on his clothes in the locker room. He noticed Finn was hanging around, and he kept opening and shutting his mouth as if he was going to say something and then decided against it. Puck had a fair idea what he wanted to say. He shoved his football jersey into his bag, slammed his locker, and practically ran to the parking lot to avoid the lecture he knew was coming.

"Hey Puck! Puck, wait a sec, I gotta talk to you!"

Puck stopped in his tracks, groaned and turned around, a fake smile on his face.

"Hey man, what's up? Make it quick though, I gotta get home, Mom's making me cook tonight…"

"Yeah, look it's about Rachel…"

"Yeah, what about her?"

"Well, you two have been spending heaps of time together lately, and I was wondering what's going on with that? Are you two, like, dating or something? She's a really awesome girl and I don't want her to get hurt is all…and come on, man, we all know about your history with women…"

OK, _that_ made Puck angry. Sure, he slept with a lot of women and dumped them _very_ soon afterwards, but that didn't make him a total douche, right? And yeah, he wasn't the _nicest _guy to Rachel and the other glee clubbers before, but he was changing that now, right? Didn't that count for anything? _Especially_ with his best friend?

"Right, and just cos we are hanging out that means I want to do her? Look bro, what Rachel and I do is none of your business! Jesus, just cos you have a thing for her, doesn't mean you have to get all chick crazy on me…"

Finn was clearly uncomfortable at that.

"I don't…have a thing… for her…"

"See you tomorrow, man."

Puck turned and got into his car, and drove away, leaving Finn standing in the same spot he had left him in.

At Glee practice the next day, Puck was ready to put his plan into action. He had bribed Artie with 50 bucks to get the jazz band to play in the background of the song. And he had picked the _perfect _song – _Sweet Caroline _by Neil Diamond. He knew it would win her over, especially when he turned on the charm. So, when Mr Schue asked if anyone had ideas for the mash-up, Puck said that he had one.

"OK, let's hear it."

Puck began the first chords of the song, and turned around to see Rachel sitting up straight in her seat with a small smile on her face.

"_Where it began, I can't begin to knowin', but then I know it's growing strong…"_

Puck saw Rachel smiling, and knew that his plan was working.

"_Was in the spring, and spring became the summer, who'd have believed you'd come along"_

He could see Finn's jealous looks out of the corner of his eye. Even better.

"_Hands, touching hands, reaching out, touching me, touching you…"_

"_Sweet Caroline, good times never seemed so good…"_

Puck had never felt anything like it before. It seemed like he and Rachel were the only two people in the room. Little did he know, Santana _was _in the room. And she could see everything that was going on.

"_I've been inclined, to believe they never would, oh, sweet Caroline, good times never seemed so good, oh, I've been inclined, to believe they never would, oh no no…"_

Rachel began applauding, as did the rest of the Glee club. He had never felt anything like it in his life – it was a new kind of high. Mr Schue loved his performance, and said that it would most likely be used in the mash-up. Puck could hardly concentrate for the rest of Glee club, and when they were dismissed he happily bounded out of the room. Still on his adrenalin high, he barely heard Rachel calling after him. He turned to face her, a smile on both of their faces. She shoved some newspaper into his hands.

"I'll meet you at 7:30 sharp. Your choice."

She threw him a smile over her shoulder and walked down the hallway, with an intentional sway in her hips. He looked at the newspaper in his hands. It was the movie session times for that night.

**A.N. Oh, one other thing: I'm still a little rusty on the limits for the T rating…could someone tell me how much language/sex/violence etc is allowed? (Don't worry, there's nothing too extreme in the pipe line, it's just my curiosity kicking in :D) Thanks everyone!**


	3. I Want You Now

**A.N. – Who else **_**adored**_** Rachel and Puck in "Mash-Up"? I wish they didn't break up…Oh, and who else is excited about **_**Defying Gravity?!**_

**Chapter title taken from **_**Hysteria **_**by Muse. Enjoy!**

_Chapter 3 – I want you now_

Puck was waiting at the movie theatre, nervous as hell. He was stumped – he was _never_ this nervous before a date – ever. It made him even more nervous to think that the girl who was doing this to him was _Rachel freaking Berry_. That annoying, crazy…smart, sexy, talented girl…Puck mentally slapped himself – this was getting out of hand. He needed to be his usual confident smooth self, he needed to man up. He went into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on his face. His heart rate was slowing down now, and his palms became less clammy. _That's better, _Puck thought, _now, stay calm. She's just a girl…she's just Rachel._ He walked with a little more swagger out of the bathroom, but the confidence he had re-gained drained out of him at the sight of Rachel waiting for him.

She was dressed in the same yellow dress that she wore for the girl's mash-up a couple of weeks before (he was even remembering what she wore – what was going on with him?). She was wearing a black belt with it and – this made his heart skip a beat – she wore sky-high black pumps. Her hair was curled nicely and looked really soft. Puck seemed to be frozen where he stood. She was so hot. Rachel turned around and saw him, and immediately a huge smile broke out onto her face. She gave a small wave, and began walking towards him. He shut his mouth and gave a small wave back. He smoothed down his clothes nervously, and waited for what seemed like hours until she reached him.

"Hello, Noah."

"Hey Berry."

God, she looked good. She actually made his heart beat so fast it felt like it was going to burst out of his chest. He smiled and chuckled nervously.

"So, Berry, what do you feel like seeing?"

"Oh no, Noah, It's your choice, remember?"

Oh yeah, he had forgot that. He chuckled nervously, and Rachel seemed to sense his anxiety.

"Well, I see that you have not picked a movie yet. How about…"

She turned to face the movie times. Puck looked at her face. She had really nice brown eyes that matched nicely with her brown hair. Her skin looked really smooth, and Puck had to fight the urge to reach out and touch her face. And her lips – so red and full – made Puck want to make out with her right then and there.

"…_The Time Traveller's Wife_?"

Puck snapped out of his daze when she turned back to him.

"Uh…yeah…whatever you want to see is fine with me!"

He flashed a smile and saw her blushing, which hyped up his confidence a bit. They bought tickets and some popcorn and sat in the theatre, waiting for the movie to start.

"So, here we are Noah, on our first date. Does it feel a little strange to you too?"

"Yeah, I mean, two weeks ago I was throwing slushies in your face, and you thought that I was…what was it that you called me?"

"A terrible, deplorable and horrid man who would not know dignity or kindness if it slapped him in the face?"

"Ha, yeah that could be it"

_Wow, _Puck thought, _she really hated me…_

"But Noah, please know that I do not feel that way anymore. After getting to know you over the past fortnight, my views of your personality have completely changed! I no longer see you as the contemptible Neanderthal who has made my high school social life a living hell."

Now, Puck may not have understood _all _of what Rachel said, but he sure understood the last bit. He felt a stab of guilt in the pit of his stomach.

"Look Rachel, I'm really sorry for all the stuff I've done over the last year. I acted like a complete jerk off."

Rachel gave a small laugh.

"Yeah, you did! But I forgive you Noah. I can tell that you have really changed, and so I accept your apology."

Rachel smiled at him, and the lights in the cinema went down as the movie started. Puck couldn't believe that she was forgiving him for all the stuff he had done to her. If someone had done that to him, he would want to beat them to a bloody pulp.

Puck could hardly concentrate on the movie. Chick flicks weren't his thing anyway, but it was mostly because of Rachel. Even in the dim light of the cinema she looked sexy. Her face would light up when the movie was happy or funny and her lips would make a little pout whenever she was sad or angry. Puck found it quite amusing. He didn't realise how long he had been looking at her – and not paying attention to the movie – because before he knew it the lights were on again and Rachel turned to him.

"So, what did you think of the film?"

"Oh, um, it was…alright…"

"You weren't paying much attention to the film were you?"

"Would you be mad if I said no?"

Rachel chuckled.

"No…I actually am touched that you would choose a movie that _I _would like in order to make me happy."

She smiled and Puck's stomach did a small flip. _What is going on with me? _He thought. _I'm turning into a chick._ Rachel turned to him.

"So, it's getting pretty late, and we have school tomorrow, so I better call my dads now."

She pulled out her phone. Puck didn't know what he was doing, it was as if his body was acting completely on its own – and he grabbed the phone out of her hand.

"Don't bother, Rach. I'll give you a lift home."

"But Noah, we live on opposite sides of Lima! I don't want to be an imposition…"

"Come on, Rach, you're never an imposition! Besides, you can't call your dads if I've got your phone!"

Puck backed away from her.

"Come on, Noah, give it back!"

Her words may have said 'no', but her actions were saying 'yes'. She took a couple of steps towards him, and he took a couple of steps back. The Rachel said something very un-Rachel like.

"It's ON, Noah Puckerman!"

With that, she sprinted towards him, and he immediately took off in the direction of his car. Rachel chased him, laughing and puffing at the same time, and Puck was laughing along with her. They chased each other around cars in the parking lot.

"Come on, Rach, is that all you've got?"

"I'm going to get you Noah!"

Puck ran around the side of the car and made a bee line for his truck. He had almost made it too…until he was tackled from the side and hit the concrete with a thud.

"Ouch! God! Are you sure you shouldn't be on the football team Berry?!"

"Yeah, I know, I think I'm better than half the guys on your team! Oh gosh that hurt!"

Puck pulled Rachel so that she was lying on top of him. They laughed, but that all stopped when they looked into each other's eyes. Puck couldn't remember ever wanting to kiss someone more, and the way that Rachel's eyes kept flickering to his lips made him think that she wanted to do the same. He was going to reach up and meet her full lips…but she beat him to it. The kiss was intense. At first it was soft, and Rachel pulled away slightly, and studied his face. He thought something was wrong – what had he done? But then she smiled and brought her lips to his. He kissed her hungrily, and she did the same – flicking her tongue against hit lips, begging him to open them. He flipped them over so that she was underneath him, and obliged. They kissed for ages; it seemed like hours – until they were distracted by a bright light shining in their faces.

"Hey kids! There's a hotel down the street, huh?"

Puck and Rachel looked up at the security guard who was looking at them with a bemused look on his face. They giggled to themselves, and Puck helped Rachel off of the ground. Rachel straightened her skirt and brushed the dirt off of her shirt.

"Thank you sir, we will be leaving now."

She giggled and pulled on Puck's hand. Puck gave the security guard a salute and let Rachel pull him away. He put his arm around her waist and walked towards the truck.

"Come on, Rach, I'll take you home…eventually!"

Puck woke up in a cold sweat for the sixteenth night in a row. He kept having this reoccurring dream – but he could never fully remember it when he woke up. He knew Rachel was in it; Santana too – and Finn, who kept yelling at him. But he just couldn't figure out what they were saying to him.

The reception had been somewhat icy when Puck and Rachel had gone public with their relationship. The Cheerios and most of the football team completely distanced themselves from him, which confused him, as normally his badassness could make anything cool. The glee club on the other hand accepted the couple with open arms – except Finn, Quinn, Santana and Brittany. Finn was still his friend, but Puck sensed something behind the niceness that made Puck suspicious. Quinn became even more horrible to Rachel, yet even nicer to Puck. Santana and Brittany followed Quinn's lead and were vile to Rachel – but the rest of Glee managed to keep them under control. Puck and Rachel didn't really notice though – they were wrapped up in each other. Puck had never felt like this about anyone – he actually wanted to be with Rachel for her looks _and _her personality. Sure, she could be a bit of a smart ass and could drive people crazy, but Puck had actually come to like those things about her. She didn't take any of his crap, and he didn't take any of hers – in that way, they kept each other under control. One thing that also made Puck happy was that Rachel never stared at Finn anymore – this showed that she truly liked him.

About a week after they went public, Puck had finished football practice late, as he had given Coach Tanaka some lip, and so had to run laps. He was looking through his bag, and realised that he had left his sheet music for Sectionals in the music room. He walked over to the main building and was let in by the janitor. Puck walked towards the room, but realised that he could hear voices…and he knew exactly who those voices belonged to.

"Look, Rachel, I'm just looking out for you, OK?"

"Looking out for me? Just admit it Finn, you are jealous of Noah and me! You're jealous because my feelings for you have gone away."

Blood rushed to Puck's head. How dare Finn, who was supposed to be his best friend, say these things?

"OK, fine, maybe I am jealous! But seriously Rach, Puck? I'm his best friend, and I know his track record with women! You will be just another one of his conquests, and I couldn't stand to see you hurt!"

"How _dare_ you, Finn Hudson! How dare you say that you couldn't stand to see me hurt! You cannot say those things to me, not after you rejected me! So, I moved on – and Noah is a brilliant person, and I don't believe for a second that he will hurt me! Goodbye Finn! I can't _stand_ to be around you right now."

Puck heard Rachel grab her bag and storm out of the room. He tried to duck into the neared classroom when –

"Noah?"

Rachel's soft voice made him nervous – she clearly knew that he had heard everything. Finn rushed out of the room, clearly in an attempt to catch Rachel before she left. He saw Puck and stopped in his tracks. All three stood stock still, waiting for someone to speak. Puck looked at Rachel, whose eyes were glistening, clearly about to burst out into tears. He looked at Finn, who looked guilty, and it angered Puck to see that Finn kept looking at Rachel longingly, clearly wanting to make her feel better. Puck gave Finn an angry look, and put his arm around Rachel, leading her to his car. They walked in silence, and got into his car. Puck sighed, and turned to her.

"Rachel, are you only with me to make him jealous?"

What silence that followed was the longest few seconds of Noah Puckerman's life.


	4. How we keep starting fires?

**Title taken from **_**Danger…High Voltage! **_**by Electric Six**_** (**_**Chapter Edited 1/11/09).**

_Chapter 4: How we keep starting fires? It's my desire._

Puck sat still with anticipation in his car, waiting for Rachel, his girlfriend, to tell him that she liked someone else. He stared ahead, waiting for the words that were going to tear him up inside. He waited, staring at nothing.

Then he looked at her. She was staring at him with her big brown eyes full of a mix of sadness and anger. That made _him _angry. Hell, he had just caught her in a full-on fight with an obviously jealous Finn, the boy she used to lust over - his best friend and the boy who was dating Quinn Fabray. The same Quinn Fabray who was pregnant with _his _baby. _Wow, _Puck thought, _this is really screwed up. _But it wasn't as if he planned any of this: knocking up Quinn, falling for Rachel…it was all one big, screwed up, fantastic accident.

He saw that Rachel had looked away and was staring at her hands. He noticed small tear trails flowing from her eyes to her chin. He reached out to her, and wiped the tears away.

"Noah, there was a time, perhaps when this first started, that I _was_ using you to make Finn jealous. I wanted him so bad Noah. You two were best friends; you even _talked _like him sometimes."

Noah was preparing to kick her out of the car. His heart sank; although he had prepared to hear this it still felt like he had been kicked in the gut…several times.

"But Noah, please know that I don't see you that way now…I like you for who you are, for how you make me feel, for the way you keep me in line…I like all of that about you, and I certainly _do not_ like Finn anymore at all! Please believe me when I tell you that!"

Puck felt overjoyed…or did he? Yes, she was (supposedly) over Finn, and she was the first girl to genuinely like him for who he was and not what he looked like. But she had used him in the first place…she had used him to make Finn jealous and to get him for her own. He wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

"Berry, I've gotta go…I can't give you a life home tonight, I have…family stuff to do…"

He noticed how her shoulders sagged and she got out of the car. She leant back into the open window.

"Will you call me tonight?"

He looked back at her, and knew that she could see the anger and uncertainty in his face.

"Maybe"

With that, he sped out of the parking lot.

________________________________________________________________

Puck had gone straight to his room without saying hello to his mom or sister. He knew that after he slammed his door, it would take exactly thirty-eight seconds for his mother to come up and see what was wrong. As much as he _hated _to admit it, he really loved that about his mother. Sure enough, he heard a small knock on the door.

"Noah, honey, is everything alright?"

His mother's face poked around the door. Puck sat down on his bed and put his head in his hands.

"Yeah, mom, everything's fine."

His mother could clearly see through the lie.

"Come on, Noah, is it school? Girl troubles? Peer pressure? Is anyone trying to sell you drugs?"

"No, mom, nobody is selling me any drugs."

He looked at his mom. She was really the only other girl he could talk to, so why not give her a shot?

"Ok, so it's a girl."

"Rachel, the Jewish girl you were talking about?"

"Yeah, that's the one. See she used to like Finn. And today she told me that when we first started going out, she was only with me to make him jealous. She was using me."

"How does she feel now?"

"Well, now she says that she likes me and not Finn. But I'm not sure what to do, mom. I mean, if she liked him before, doesn't that mean that she could just as easily start liking him again?"

"Hmm…well, honey, she's being honest with you about how she feels, which means you should be able to trust her. Noah, this girl has obviously poured her heart out to you. If she says that she likes you now, then I think you should give her another chance. Just talk to her and let her know how you are feeling about the situation, alright honey?"

"OK mom. Thanks for the advice."

"Any time, sweetie."

She kissed him on the forehead and left the room. Puck had no idea what he was going to say, but after talking to his mother he knew that he had to talk to Rachel. He picked up his phone and went through his phonebook looking for Rachel's cell number. He was about to press 'call', but for some reason he knew that words would not be enough. He had to see her.

_______________________________________________________________

Rachel was lying on her bed, trying to think of solutions to get Noah to trust her again. She had been there for three hours so far, and she still had nothing. She had picked up her phone several times, and found Noah's number in the phonebook, but every time she went to press the call button, she had instead burst out into tears. She was grateful that her parents were not home tonight, as otherwise she would have endured their many painful attempts to cheer her up. Rachel loved her dads, but sometimes she just wanted to be left alone. Now was _definitely _one of those times.

She had been lying there for god knows how long, when suddenly she heard her phone ringing. _Oh, God_ Rachel thought, _Is that Noah? _She was excited yet terribly nervous, and grabbed the phone off of her dresser. The caller had their number blocked, and normally she didn't answer those calls, but today she would have to make an exception. Her heart depended on it.

"Hello, Rachel Berry speaking."

"Rach? It's Finn"

Rachel's heart immediately sank. She had been hoping with all her heart that she would be hearing Noah's voice on the other end of the line.

"Oh…Hi Finn"

"Look Rach, I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry about today…I was a real jerk."

"Yeah, Finn, you were."

"Yeah, I know. I shouldn't have said any of that stuff about you or Puck."

"No, Finn, you shouldn't have. I was very offended by some of the things you were saying. And I know that, although he will never admit it, Noah was deeply hurt by the things you said about him."

"Yeah, I know. I was a complete jerk. I don't know what came over me, Rach. Anyway, I wanted to ring and apologise."

"Well, thankyou Finn. I accept your apology. Noah may not be as gracious as me, though."

"Yeah, I'm about to ring him now and apologise. But can I take you bowling tomorrow, just to say sorry?"

Rachel thought hard about this. Noah certainly wouldn't be pleased to hear that she and Finn were spending one-on-one time together, not after the events of the past few hours. _But, _saida small voice in Rachel's mind, _Noah's not here now, is he? He may break up with you after today._ Rachel gave a small sob at this.

"Rach, are you OK?"

"Um…yeah I'm alright, Finn. And bowling sounds lovely. Shall we meet after school? At the auditorium?"

"That sounds cool. I'll see you then!"

Rachel winced at the cheerful sound in his voice. _You will have to make yourself very clear to him, Rachel – you do NOT like him like that anymore. _

"See you then Finn. I'm so glad that we will be _friends _again."

Rachel quickly hung up the phone. Yes, that was rude. But what else could she do? Which ever way things go, someone will get hurt.

________________________________________________________________

Puck was racing over to Rachel's house, as quickly as he could without breaking any laws. All he could think about was Rachel. He heard his phone ringing, and picked it up. The caller was blocked. That would have to wait until later. He saw Rachel's street up ahead, and screamed around the corner. He pulled up next to the sidewalk in front of her house. He could see the lights on in her house. And there was no car in the driveway, which meant that her parents weren't home. Score.

He jogged up to her doorstep and pressed her doorbell. He still had no idea what he was going to say to her. He was good at improvising though; he had to be in order to get out of so many assignments.

He heard her walking to the door, and his heart began to pound.

She answered the door. He saw the look of shock, happiness, sadness and fear on her face. He could tell she had been crying, because some of her make-up was smeared on her face. Puck didn't care. As far as he was concerned, she had never looked so beautiful.

"Noah…hi"

Puck knew he didn't have to say anything. Instead, he grabbed her by the waist, pulled her close to him and placed his lips on hers.

He could tell she was shocked. Her whole body tensed up and she wasn't responding to his kiss. She pulled away and had a surprised look on her face.

"Noah…what about this afternoon? Aren't you still angry at me?"

"Nah, not anymore. If you say that you like me, that you want to be with me, I believe you."

A massive smile broke out onto Rachel's face. She pulled him towards her and mashed her lips against his. The kiss started off soft, light, but then grew to a deeper kiss. It was as if a light had been switched on in their bodies; she pressed her body into his (which drove Puck crazy) and they were kissing so passionately it was as if they were glued together. Rachel started pulling Puck up the stairs, still kissing him, which caused them to trip slightly on the stairs. Puck had a fair idea where she was leading him, and this caused butterflies to erupt in his stomach. What was wrong with him? He'd had plenty of experience, why was this so different?

She pulled them into her room and pulled him onto her bed, causing him to fall on top of her. She giggled and kissed him again, slightly softer this time. As much as he _really _didn't want to stop, Puck had to make sure _exactly _where they were heading. He pulled away and chuckled slightly at the look of disappointment on her face.

"Rach, hang on a sec OK? I just want to make sure…are you sure that you want to…that you're ready to - "

"Noah, I know what you're going to say. I assure you, I am competent at making my own decisions. And my decision is that…I want to be with you. In every sense of the phrase..."

Puck loved that she blushed when she said that. That was all the confirmation that he needed. He dipped his head and began kissing her neck, and as he did so she pulled the cord to turn off her lamp, plunging them into darkness.

_______________________________________________________________

Santana had been in a terrible mood for the past few weeks. She had to watch Puck and that glee freak together every day; she had to see how weird he was being, all nice and sweet (she thought it was _so_ fake), and on top of that she had to see them making out every chance they got. It was sickening, as far as she was concerned. And drastic action needed to be taken. She had some information that would bring them down, and knock precious Quinn off of the top of the social ladder…and she was going to use it. Soon, she would be queen, and Puck, Quinn and the gleek would be bottom of the heap.

**A.N. – Ok, so I'm not **_**entirely **_**happy with this chapter, especially with the Puck/Rachel fluff, but here it is. Angst ahead, as Santana is a bitch. At least for the purposes of this fic ^____^ Thanks again.**


	5. It was not your fault, but mine

**Chapter title from "Little Lion Man" by Mumford and Sons. Enjoy ^___^**

_Chapter 5: It was not your fault, but mine._

Rachel woke up the next morning when the light shone through her window. Hadn't she closed the blinds last night? Apparently not. _Something is different_, thought Rachel, still in her post-sleep stupor. She turned over and there he was; Noah Puckerman, her boyfriend, the man who made her a woman. She smiled when she remembered the events of last night. He had been so gentle, so loving and respectful, things she would never have thought him to be a month ago. Oh, how things have changed. She remembered how he told her she was beautiful, how he had made her feel safe and wanted. It was the best night of her life, even better than singing on stage. This was a different kind of rush.

He stirred and opened his eyes, and Rachel chuckled at the momentary look of confusion on his face as he tried to figure out where he was. After a moment, he smiled and reached out to her. He placed his hand on her face, and she smiled back at him.

"Hey sleepy-head."

"Hey yourself."

Rachel snuggled into him, loving the feeling of his warm body on hers. They lay in silence for a while. There was no need for words.

Rachel looked at the clock, and sat bolt upright.

"Oh God! It's already 8 o'clock!"

She jumped up and ran to her wardrobe to hastily pick an outfit. She grabbed her favourite pink skirt and a plain white shirt, some knee-highs and patent black flats. She grabbed a hair brush and headed for her ensuite, when she realised that Noah had not left the bed.

"Come on, Noah, If we don't hurry we will be late for home room."

"They still have that?"

He gave her a crooked smile, one which almost made her jump right back in bed with him.

"Come on, out of bed! I'm going to have a shower, how about you get some breakfast ready for us?"

"Alright, alright."

He started getting out of bed and Rachel took one last look at him before shutting the door to the bathroom. She turned on the water, let it heat up, and jumped in the shower. She was still a bit sore from last night, but the pain was worth it. She was also very grateful that her parents had stayed out of town that night; she certainly wouldn't want to explain Noah's presence at their house at eight in the morning. She quickly washed and jumped out the shower. She dried herself, got dressed, brushed her hair and brushed her teeth. She threw her books into her bag and went downstairs.

Noah had prepared some cereal and toast for them and she sat down in the chair he held out for her. They ate quickly, and Noah went to have a quick shower while Rachel cleaned up and washed their dishes. Once he had finished, they jumped in his car and headed to school. While they were driving, Rachel noticed Noah looking at her a lot.

"What are you staring at Noah Puckerman?" She said with a playful smile on her lips.

"You, Rachel Berry. May I say that you look lovely today?"

"You may!" She giggled. She loved this gentlemanly side of Noah. She could really get used to this. She had never felt so…beautiful, so sexy, in her entire life.

"You know, Noah, I want to commend you on how gentlemanly you have been recently, especially last night. And I want you to know, last night… well, it was the best night of my life."

Noah reached out and took her hand in his.

"Your right, Rach, it was pretty damn great."

He smiled at her. Rachel knew that he felt exactly the same as she did, even if he wasn't as eloquent as expressing it.

______________________________________________________________

Rachel had spent nearly fifteen minutes making out with Noah in the car, before distantly hearing the bell for homeroom ring, giving him one last kiss and running off into the school. She had spent the first three periods in a Noah-induced daze, her mind drifting to the previous night. His hands all over her body, her hands running over his stomach, his back…the feeling of his –

"Rachel?"

Rachel snapped out of her daze to see the whole class, including Finn, who was sitting two rows in front of her, staring at her.

"Yes, Miss Porter?"

"Can you tell us about tragic elements in _Romeo and Juliet?"_

_Romeo and Juliet_? Oh yeah, she was in English class. Oh God, she had no idea what they had been talking about. This was so unlike her. She sat there, completely speechless for the first time _ever_ in English class.

"Um…tragic, um, tragic elements...Uh, well, um…"

"See me after class, Rachel. Brittany, tragic elements in _Romeo and Juliet?"_

Rachel sighed and looked up to see Finn still looking at her. He looked away as soon as she locked eyes with him. What was going on with him? She didn't have much time to contemplate this, as soon her thoughts were back on Noah. Noah, Noah, Noah – he drove her crazy in the best ways possible. The bell rang, and she stayed behind waiting for a lecture from Miss Porter.

"Rachel, are you feeling alright today?"

"I'm just a bit tired, Miss Porter. I was up very late last night, working on choreography for a glee number."

"Well, Rachel, I've noticed a change in you during the last month…and I have heard that you have begun dating Noah Puckerman? I'm concerned that he may be affecting the quality of you work, and I would hate for that to happen to you."

"Miss Porter, my romantic life has no effect on my academic achievements; I can assure you of that. I apologise for being distracted today, and I promise that it will not happen again."

"Well…if you're sure, Rachel. I'll see you next class."

Rachel walked out of the classroom and before she could walk three steps she was stopped by Finn.

"Hey Rach. Are you OK? You seem a bit strange."

"Yeah Finn, I'm fine."

"Well, if you say so. Anyway, are we still on for bowling this afternoon?"

_Oh God, I agreed to go bowling with him._ Rachel had completely forgot about hanging out with Finn, and she was sure that Noah would be angry when he found out that she would be spending one-on-one time with the boy who confessed his feelings for her not a day earlier. But she knew she couldn't cancel on Finn; he was, after all, her friend, and he did seem genuinely sorry.

"Oh, yeah, bowling. Meeting outside the auditorium after school, right?"

"That's it. See you then, Rach."

He ran off in the opposite direction. Rachel began heading to her locker, but detoured to the girl's bathroom on the way. She went to the toilet, and while she was in the cubicle, she could hear someone else come in and shut the door. She flushed the toilet and walked out of the cubicle, only to be confronted with Santana sitting on the bench, filing her nails.

"Hey freak"

Rachel rolled her eyes and ignored Santana, instead washing her hands and drying them with a paper towel. Santana put down her nail file and turned to Rachel.

"So, how are you and Puck going? He impregnated you yet?"

"Please, Santana, leave me alone."

Rachel made for the door, but Santana blocked her path.

"I only ask, you know, because it wouldn't be the first time."

"The first time?"

"The first time that he has impregnated someone"

Rachel felt a stab somewhere inside her, perhaps one of anger? Or maybe, deep down, did she know that there may be some truth in what Santana was saying?

"That's ridiculous, Santana."

"Is it? I can see it in your eyes; you know that I'm telling the truth. I can see that hint of doubt."

Rachel tried her best to keep her face as blank as possible.

"Well, I bet you're dying to know who it is, huh? Well, that is one juicy bit of information, freak. You see, you know this person. I know this person. Everyone at this _school _knows this person. I'll give you a clue. Who do we all know who is pregnant?"

One name – one heartbreaking name – rose to the back of Rachel's throat, but refused to make its way out. She didn't even have to say it – Santana knew that she had won.

"Uh-huh." She said with a smirk, grabbed her nail file and walked out of the bathroom, leaving Rachel standing, shaking, shocked, her heart sinking.

________________________________________________________________

Quinn was at her locker in the change rooms, cleaning out her locker. She had officially been kicked off of the Cheerios. She was pregnant, a liar, breaking the hearts of two boys, and had been knocked off of the top rung of the McKinley ladder. _My life couldn't possibly be any worse, _thought Quinn. Or so she assumed.

"Is it true?"

Quinn whirled around to see a distraught Rachel Berry standing in front of her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Did Noah impregnate you?"

The question threw her off balance. She had no answer. That was all the confirmation that Rachel needed, clearly, as with a sob, she ran from the room. Quinn leant against the locker, slid down to the floor and put her head in her hands.

________________________________________________________________

Rachel stormed down the hallway, tears streaming down her face. She was supposed to be in fourth period, but she knew that she could not go back to class. She also knew that Noah skipped fourth period and sat on the bleachers, drinking the bottle of bourbon that he kept in his glove compartment in his car. She had always hated that he did that, but for once she was grateful that he was not in class, so that she could confront him.

There he was, as per usual, sitting on the bleachers.

She towards him and she could see the smile, the one that usually made her weak at the knees, falter with every step she took.

"Rach, are you alright? What's the matter?"

"I know, Noah."

She saw his face fall.

"I know about you and Quinn."

They stood there, neither able to speak. Rachel had tears streaming down her face; Puck looked away from her, physically unable to see her feeling like this.

"Why didn't you tell me, Noah? How could you lie to me, to Finn?"

"Rach, I'm so sorry, I didn't plan any of this to happen, and she didn't want me to tell Finn, she doesn't want me in her life, she doesn't want me to be near the baby –"

"Why didn't you tell _me, _Noah?"

"I…I thought that you wouldn't…wouldn't want to be…with me…anymore…"

They stood there, completely shattered, unsure, at a crossroads.

"Noah, I can't be around you right now –"

"Please, Rachel –"

Puck reached out to grab her hand, and she pulled away.

"No, Noah, I can't be near you right now. You kept this huge, _massive, _secret from me, and I don't know if I can trust you anymore."

Rachel ran down the stairs of the bleachers and into the auditorium, her safe spot, a place where she could let go. And she did just that. She let everything go, and sunk to the ground and cried.

________________________________________________________________

Finn was waiting by the auditorium for Rachel. He was worried; he had asked Kurt, Mercedes, Artie and Tina where she was, but none of them had seen her since that morning. Something was wrong, he knew it.

He was about to call her when he saw Quinn walking towards him. He immediately wanted her to leave, but then felt a stab of guilt; this was the mother of his child, his girlfriend, he shouldn't be feeling this way. He realised when she got closer to him that she was in tears.

"Quinn, are you OK?"

She sobbed, her shoulders sagging.

"Finn, I have to tell you something. Can we go inside please?"

"Uh, yeah, alright."

They walked into the auditorium and sat down in one of the many chairs.

"Finn…before I tell you this, please know that I am so, so sorry, and that I love you so much, and I hope you will forgive me."

"Quinn, what's up? You're starting to scare me…"

"Oh Finn…I should have told you from the beginning…the baby…the baby isn't yours Finn…"

Finn sat still, shocked at what he was hearing.

"What did you say?"

"You're not the father of the baby."

Finn couldn't believe what he was hearing. After all this time, after everything he did, what he was willing to give up…all that for a child that wasn't his. He felt anger boil up inside of him. Quinn was still talking to him, but he couldn't hear what she was saying; he didn't want to. There was one thing he did want to hear, though, straight from her lips.

"Who?"

Quinn seemed to know exactly what he was asking, and she looked at her hands, unable to meet him in the eye.

"Puck."

Finn grabbed his bag and walked away, unable to look at her anymore. He could barely hear her crying; he was filling up with anger, all he wanted was to hurt her, hurt him, the two people he was supposed to trust most in this world. Finn knew that no one would be backstage of the auditorium; there were no glee or band practices that afternoon. He stormed backstage and threw his bag against the wall. He wanted to scream, to cry, to let go of all of the pain he was feeling. He leant against the wall and doubled over, looking at his feet, feeling his head pound. That was when he realised: he could hear someone crying; a girl by the sounds of it. He walked around the corner into the dressing rooms and there she was – Rachel Berry, sad, teary, alone. She looked up and saw him standing there, tears in his own eyes.

"She told you, didn't she?"

"Yeah, she did."

"Oh, Finn, I'm so sorry."

He went and sat on the bench next to her.

"I'm guessing Puck told you? Is that why you're crying?"

"Actually, no, Santana told me. But yes, that is why I'm crying."

They sat in silence. Finn didn't know what to do; he was so lost.

"I think she really does love you, Finn. That's probably why she didn't want to tell you. Because she loved you, and she didn't want to lose you."

Finn realised that Rachel was right. Rachel was always right about these kinds of things.

"Finn, if you want to talk to someone about how you are feeling about this, then I'm here, alright?"

She put her hand on his, and looked into his eyes. When she did so, all the thoughts of Quinn and the baby and hurting Puck went flying out of the window – all the thought of was:_ Rachel. _He leaned towards her, wanting to kiss her, wanting not to talk to her about his feelings, but to show her.

_______________________________________________________________

Rachel put her hand on Finn's. She felt so sorry for him; he really didn't deserve this. She looked into his eyes. She saw something: a mixture of sadness, confusion, and a hint of lust…or was it something more? He leaned towards her, moving for her lips. All she thought of was:

_Noah._

**A.N. I struggled with the ending, but I'm happy with the different points of view in this chapter; I wanted to try using multiple points of view. Please give me your opinions on this chapter, let me know how my experiments went! Thanks ^____^ P.S. Thought I'd better put this disclaimer in, for good measure: I don't own Glee, or Romeo and Juliet.**


	6. What I Want, You've Got

**Chapter title from **_**You Make My Dreams **_**by Hall and Oates. R and R please :D**

_Chapter 6: What I want, you've got._

It was like a scene from a movie. He seemed to lean in almost in slow motion, or at least that was how it felt to Rachel. Here it was: the opportunity she used to dream about. Should she take it?

Before she could finish the battle that was raging in her head, his lips crushed down onto hers. She was kissing Finn Hudson...again. But this time, for some reason, it didn't feel…_right_. Was it his lips? Perhaps they weren't as soft as Noahs. Or was it the way he was kissing…perhaps he'd lost his touch? No. Rachel knew why it was a bad kiss – it was because she really wanted to be kissing someone else.

Rachel pulled away quickly, and noticed the immediate hurt and anger in Finn's eyes.

"Finn…I'm sorry. I…I can't do this."

"Why not?"

Rachel stayed silent. She'd never really had to reject anyone before; it was always her that was rejected. Apparently she didn't need to say anything. Finn must have (finally) worked it out.

"It's Puck, isn't it?"

"Yes. It's Noah."

"Why do you like him? He's a jerk to everyone, including me, and I'm his best friend! Or rather, I was…"

Ah, yes, it all came crashing back to her now. The kiss had momentarily disarmed her, but it came flooding back. _Noah is the father of Quinn's baby. _How could they possibly have the same carefree relationship that they have enjoyed? Could she trust him after this, seeing as he kept such a huge, life changing secret from her? Finn was evidently thinking the same thing.

"How can you stand him? Knowing that he slept with her and lied to us the whole time?"

While she was normally a self-confessed know-it-all, Rachel really didn't have an answer to that question. She didn't know how she could stand him. But deep down, she just knew that she could. After everything he had done to her: the slushies, the torment, the insults, being the father of Quinn Fabray's baby…none of it seemed to matter anymore. She knew the real Noah…the kind, sweet, actually kind of smart _man_ that he had become. So she knew that what was about to come out of her mouth was completely and utterly true.

"Because…well, Finn…I think I have fallen in love with him. The rest…well, it will all work itself out."

And with that, Rachel turned away from Finn and walked out of the dressing rooms.

* * *

Puck had gone straight home after the confrontation with Rachel. He didn't have the energy for any of it; the impending fights with Finn and Quinn, the fact that soon everyone at McKinley would know…but he knew, that worst of all, Rachel would be humiliated by all of this. That's what he hated the most.

He flopped onto his bed, exhausted, but also a little drowsy from the bourbon. Alcohol always made him sleepy. Within minutes, he was sound asleep.

* * *

Puck was standing on the stage in the auditorium. The spotlight was on him; the light was blinding and the heat was intense. He looked around in confusion. _What the hell am I doing here?_

Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming towards him; the sound of high heels clacking against the stage seemed to echo throughout the room. He whirled around to see who it was. Rachel Berry – but, a different Rachel – was walking towards him. She seemed older; she was dressed in business attire, wearing bold red lipstick, her chestnut coloured hair styled in light curls. She was wearing black pumps, and had a sneer on her face that made Puck uneasy. He should be turned on, seeing her dressed like that, but for some reason, he was only scared.

"You're a pig, Noah Puckerman."

OK, that stung.

"Yeah, but you deserve it."

Puck was shocked. It was as if Rachel could read his thoughts.

"I can. I know everything now. And since I got rid of you, I've never been happier. Sorry, honey, you're just a Lime loser, dragging me down."

She sneered at him. _What is going on? _Puck thought. Suddenly, Finn came out of the shadows and stood next to Rachel. He was wearing a sneer exactly like she was. He looped his arm around her waist, and pulled her into a big, long, passionate kiss.

Anger boiled up inside Puck, and he made to storm over there and beat the shit out of Finn…but he couldn't move. It was as if he was super-glued to the ground. Rachel and Finn laughed at him.

"You brought this on yourself, you know."

He whipped his head around to see Santana sitting on the piano, filing her nails.

"You really should have just kept it in your pants, then you wouldn't be in this mess. I am _so _glad it's not me in her maternity wear…"

Puck tried to move, but again he was stuck. He was trapped.

"Not as trapped as me. My parents are going to kill me. And now I have nobody…"

He looked to his front and there was Quinn, sitting front row centre, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"You got me pregnant. It's all your fault. Everything's…wrong…"

She got up and walked onto the stage. Santana jumped off of the piano sauntered towards him. Rachel and Finn held hands and followed Santana. They converged on him, and collectively screamed one fact.

"It's all your fault!"

Puck awoke in a cold sweat. It was that reoccurring dream he'd been having. It was his worst fear come to life.

* * *

Rachel walked into Glee the next day and found the group remarkably smaller. Santana had apparently quit, leaving their Sectionals hopes dashed, and Quinn hadn't turned up to school. Finn was there, but not really _there_ – he sat in the corner, fuming, Mr Schuester trying to talk to him. Puck wasn't there either. When Finn saw Rachel walk in the door, his expression got darker, and he grabbed his bag, jumped up and left the room.

"Hey, Finn! We haven't finished here!"

Mr Schue ran after Finn. At the same time, the remaining members of the Glee club converged on Rachel

"So girl, what happened?" Mercedes asked, her eyes alight with the thrill of new juicy gossip.

"Yeah, what did happen? Finn's a mess, Quinn's getting crucified, Puck's drunk as a sailor down by the bleachers, and Santana…well, she's just a bitch."

Rachel laughed at Kurt's description of things. He actually had it pretty spot on.

She looked around at everyone. Artie and Tina sat next to each other, holding hands. _Wait…when did that happen?_ Rachel thought. Matt and Mike sat apart slightly, as if they knew they shouldn't be gossiping, but leant forward like they wanted to know everything. Brittany just sat next to Rachel and put her arm around her shoulder.

"It's OK Rachel, like, if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. We know how much you are totally, like, in love with Puck."

"I wasn't…I'm not in…love…"

Rachel looked around at these people, _her _people, her friends, even people like Matt and Mike and Brittany, people she never thought she would be friends with. She knew that they would support her. This was her group - the Glee club. And, with this knowledge, she broke down into tears and told them everything. And they sat there, and listened, and supported their friend.

* * *

Mr Schuester couldn't find Finn. He was walking back to Glee club, but just before he walked in the door, he looked in the window. The kids were huddled around Rachel, who was crying. Will knew something was happening, probably with the baby, and he had to find out what, because it was killing his Glee kids. But he saw Kurt and Mercedes, listening to Rachel, their faces reacting whenever she told them an apparently juicy detail. Artie and Tina sat, frowning at what they were hearing. Matt and Mike were sitting slightly apart from the others, but were still in the group. Brittany (who, Will thought, was actually a pretty good kid) sat with her arm around Rachel, comforting her.

"Give them time, Will, they are good kids. They will help each other through whatever it is."

Will turned around and saw Emma Pillsbury standing behind him. He knew she was right; she was _always _right about this stuff.

"Come on, Will, how about we get a coffee from the teacher's lounge while they sort this out?"

Will nodded, and with one last look at his glee kids, turned and walked down the hall with Emma. He knew they would be alright.

* * *

Puck sat underneath the bleachers, finishing off the bottle of vodka he had stolen from his mom's liquor cabinet, and smoking a joint. He knew he could very well be expelled for this, but he didn't really care anymore. There was nothing for him at McKinley now – Quinn wouldn't let him be the father of the baby, Finn hated him and his impending dumping from Rachel was too much for him to bear.

He looked up and saw Finn marching towards him. _This should be interesting, _he thought.

"PUCKERMAN!"

Finn looked angry as hell. He threw his bag on the ground, and pulled Puck up by his collar.

"Did you really think that I wouldn't find out?"

Puck just looked at him. He knew he would look like a douche bag, but the alcohol and weed really made him drowsy.

"She didn't want you to know, man. Besides, you should be baking me a damn cake, now that you don't have to deal with this."

He hardly felt the blow that came down onto his face.

"What did you say?"

"Look, she wanted you, man. I offered to be the father, and she chose you."

The second blow to his face was muffled. He could see blood dripping onto the ground, but he couldn't feel it running down his face.

"That doesn't matter! You should have told me! You're my best friend!"

The third blow was only slightly painful.

"She wants you, Finn. She wants you to be the father."

Bam. Bam. Bam. Three successive blows and Puck felt almost nothing. He waited patiently for the fourth one, but it never came. He opened his eyes, and saw Finn crying beside him, blood all over his knuckles. Puck shuffled over to his friend, and put his hand on his shoulder. He expected it to be shoved away instantly, but instead Finn hugged him. Puck decided to return the hug. Despite his usual hate of any public displays of affection with other guys, he didn't mind it.

"I wish I was the father", Finn said into Pucks shoulder.

"You are dude. You may not be its bio dad, but you are its _real_ dad."

As much as Puck hated to say it, it was the truth.

* * *

Puck had walked home that night. It took him nearly an hour, but he knew it was better than driving his truck home drunk and high. He knocked on his door (he couldn't be bothered getting his keys out of his pocket). His mom answered. She looked horrified when he had opened the door to see her son with dried blood all over his face and all over his clothes. When he saw her, he broke down into tears, and she pulled him into a hug – a comforting motherly hug.

"Noah, sweetheart, what's wrong?"

Puck sniffed loudly, and she pulled him out of the hug and grasped his face in her hands, surveying her son's bloodied face.

"It's all my fault, mom."

His mom had cleaned his wounds (Finn had actually done some damage) while he told her everything – the baby, Quinn's lie, Finn crying and what was sure to come with Rachel. After she had finished, she sent him upstairs to soak in the bath. He had stayed there for nearly an hour, and when he had hopped out of the tub, dressed and gone downstairs and found that dinner was made for him. He ate in silence, his little sister opening and shutting her mouth as if to say something, her mother giving her a rude look that silenced her before the words came out. Puck finished, rinsed off his plate and walked upstairs to his room. He tried to play something on the guitar, but it just didn't sound right.

_Maybe it's because she's not here to sing to it._

He looked at his alarm clock – it was 7:45pm. He sighed, and flopped down on his bed. Almost instantly, he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"Honey, wake up! Quickly, she's here!"

Puck's eyes fluttered open.

"Come on, mom, five more minutes…"

Puck's mom pulled the covers off of him, which caused him to groan in annoyance.

"Get up, Noah, _she's here!"_

"Alright, alright, let her in…"

He had expected Quinn to come around at some point to discuss what would happen now that the truth was out. He just didn't think it would be this soon.

"Come in sweetie, he's awake."

Puck's mom looked down the stairs at her, a small smile on her face. When she finally reached the top of the stairs, Puck felt like throwing up – he was feeling happiness, sadness, fear, lust and guilt all at the same time, and it made his stomach churn. There, walking into his room was Rachel Berry.

She shut the door and turned to face him, a small smile on her face.

"Hello."

The smile disappeared when she registered his face. She walked over and sat on the edge of the bed next to him, and looked at his wounds.

"Oh Noah, who did this?"

He chuckled nervously.

"Who do you think?"

After a few seconds, her mouth made a little O that showed she understood.

"Finn."

He nodded, and looked down at his hands.

"Rachel…I'm really sorry about everything. I should have told you about Quinn, but she didn't want anyone knowing, and she didn't want me to have anything to do with the baby."

Rachel just nodded.

"I know what's coming next, Rach, so just do it fast…like ripping off a bandaid."

Rachel tilted her head to one side and had a confused look on her face.

"What do you mean, Noah?"

"Well, this is you dumping me, right? I can't say I blame you, who would want to date a Lima loser like me who got his best friend's girlfriend pregnant and didn't tell anyone, especially his new girlfriend about it. It's all my fault, and it's cool, I understand."

She sighed slightly and looked sadly at her boyfriend.

"I don't want to break up with you, Noah. I actually came here to tell you that…well…I think I'm falling in love with you."

Puck's head whipped upwards in shock.

"What? Why?"

She giggled.

"Because, Noah, you are a smart, kind, loving human being. Sure, you may have kept this massive secret from me, but I know that you're a good person. After all, you were keeping it a secret out of respect for Quinn, and I admire that."

Puck rubbed the back of his neck; it was sore from the beating.

"Wow, Rach. I really thought that you were breaking up with me tonight."

"No, of course not, Noah. That is, if you still want to be with me, I mean now that Quinn's free you may want to start dating her…"

"No! I mean, she's great and I'll help her out with the baby and all, but I want to be with you!"

Rachel smiled and took his hand.

"But Rach, I want to be honest with you, I want no secrets between us. I know this may just make you want to dump me, but I need to tell you. The reason I first asked you out was because…well…my mom wanted me to date a Jewish girl. And I saw you wearing your Star of David and I realised you were Jewish, and you were really hot so I asked you out. But now I like you for other stuff too! Like how you sing, and how you use big words, and how annoying you can be, no really I love that! Rach…I think I might love you."

Her expression had gone to one of confusion, then anger, then sadness, then happiness all in the space of thirty seconds. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him hard on the lips. He winced a bit (he was worried that his split lip would start bleeding again), and she pulled away.

"Sorry Noah! I forgot!"

"That's cool, it was worth it. So…you don't want to dump me, then? Even after I've been such a jerk?"

"Noah, neither of us is perfect! Besides, I have something of my own to confess. Yesterday after you had told me about Quinn, I went to the auditorium to be alone. After a while, Finn came in, and he had obviously found out because he was angry too. He sat down beside me, and we were talking, and then suddenly…he kissed me. But I pulled away, I promise! As soon as his lips hit mine I knew that it was _you_ that I wanted to be kissing, regardless of everything that had happened. And then I talked to the Glee club today and I realised that I shouldn't waste any time _not_ being with you if I loved you so much. I only hope that you can forgive me for my actions."

Noah chuckled.

"You're already forgiven, Rach."

She smiled and kissed him again, this time longer and softer. He pulled away, and looked her in the eye.

"Rachel, I promise from now on I will never do anything to hurt you ever again."

Rachel smiled.

"I know that already, Noah, or I wouldn't be here right now."

He pulled her into a hug, wondering how he got so lucky.

* * *

On the other side of the door, his mom and his sister (who had listened to the whole conversation) jumped for joy.

**A/N: All together now…**_**awwwww**_**! Yes, I had to give that chapter a fluffy ending! Anyway, please R and R, I really would like feedback on my writing as I want to write more stories in the future. So any constructive comments (hopefully positive :D) would be fantastic! The next chapter will be the last, and I can assure you that I will wrap up all the loose ends (mainly Quinn's baby drama, as I didn't want it to get in the way of the Puckleberry goodness :D). Thanks guys, and remember, reviews = love 3**


	7. A Moment of Love

**Final chapter title based on **_**Sweet Disposition**_** by The Temper Trap. Story title also based on the song as well :D**

_Chapter 7: A Moment of Love._

Puck woke up to the light coming through his window. He looked over at his alarm clock – it was 7:15am. His mom wasn't home; she had gone to a conference for work, and his little sister had gone to a sleepover last night, so he had had the house to himself. Well, himself and Rachel. They were lying together in bed, spooning.

The secret had come out about five months ago. When the story hit the rest of the school population, Puck had become a social outcast. Hardly anyone had wanted to be friends with the jerk who had knocked up his best friend's girlfriend, and then let said best friend believe that he was the father. In fact, the Glee kids were the only ones who had stayed friends with him. Finn didn't talk to him for a while, which actually sucked: as jealous as he had been of his best friend, Puck really missed him. After the news broke, and her parents found out, Quinn hadn't shown up for school for two weeks. Mr Schue had gone to her house with Ms. Pillsbury, and talked to her parents, who had insisted that Quinn was to be sent away to have the baby, that would then be adopted out. Quinn had begged Mr Schuester and Ms Pillsbury to take her with them, and she had packed a bag and gone to stay with Mr Schuester and his wife. Finn had been angry at first, but he and Quinn had talked, and decided that they wanted to stay together and raise the baby. Quinn had moved in with Finn and his mom, and had not talked to her parents since. She was getting really big now, too.

After Finn and Quinn were back together, Puck and Finn slowly began talking again. They would never be at the level of friendship that they were at before all of the baby drama, but they were at least talking again. Puck and Finn fighting had made Glee extremely uncomfortable, but neither of them left the club because if they did, the team wouldn't go to regionals. But success at sectionals and regionals had somehow brought them closer together, and had somehow healed a bit of the rift between them. Puck never blamed Finn for being angry at him, not once – he couldn't really; Puck _had _slept with Quinn and then lied about being the baby's father.

Through all of the highs of regionals and the lows of the baby drama, Rachel had been there for Puck. Most of the time he didn't understand why she was with him, he chalked their relationship up to him being lucky enough (and a big enough stud, he thought with an internal smirk) to be with her. He…well, there was no other word for it: he _loved _Rachel. She was completely nuts, talented, amazingly hot, kind, lovable. He knew that she would be the first and only person that he would ever love.

Just as he thought that (it was as if she could read his thoughts!) Rachel snuggled deeper into him.

"I love you", she muttered. Puck smiled.

"Of course you do, I'm a stud!"

She swung a hand back in a feeble attempt to hit him. He laughed.

"Nice try, Berry!"

This time she turned around and smacked him in the back of the head, Gibbs style.

"Ouch! Fine, fine, I love you too!"

Rachel smiled, victorious.

"That's better."

She snaked her arm around his waist. He smiled at her, and she smiled at him. Everything was right.

"What time is it?" Rachel asked with a yawn.

"Quarter past seven"

"So we can lie here for a while then. We don't have to leave until 8:30, right?"

"Yep. That means that we have plenty of time…"

"Time for what?" Rachel asked, although she already knew the answer.

"For this…"

Puck rolled them over so that he was on top of Rachel. He hesitated for a second, looking at her. _God, she's hot…no…she's beautiful. _He kissed her, softly, lovingly, and she responded. Their kisses became more passionate, more urgent and intense. Puck tore his mouth away from Rachel's and began kissing her neck.

"Yeah" breathed Rachel. "We definitely have time for this."

* * *

Rachel lay in Noah's bed while he took a shower. She was in a post-coital stage of bliss. She had been surprised at her awakened sexual appetite: she and Noah had sex _a lot_. Not that she was complaining, of course.

She had stood by him the best that she could during all of the drama. It was hard, no doubt; Finn had been furious with her for siding with Noah, but he had soon calmed down when he and Quinn began their relationship again. She had also been surprised at the Glee club's response to it all. She had fully expected for them all to turn against Noah like the rest of the student body, but they had been surprisingly supportive. Santana, Mercedes and Kurt had been cold at first (well, Santana had always been cold), but they became civil soon enough. Even Mr Schue was nice to him. Rachel had expected him to give Noah the cold shoulder, as everyone knew that Finn was Mr Schue's favourite student. But he had been nothing but nice to Noah.

She had realised two weeks after the secret broke that she was in love with him. He had kept his anger under control, which impressed her, and had had been the perfect boyfriend. Finn had once said that this was 'fake Puck', a guy who was only being this way to get into her pants. But Rachel realised that this was the _real _Noah – sure, he was a little rough around the edges: a bit egotistical, and tended to use his fists to express himself, but he was loving, gentle and a bit self-conscious like her. But surprisingly, he had said 'I love you' first. They had been in the middle of having sex, and he had just said it. She had been so stunned that she just stopped what she was doing and looked at him like an idiot. He looked so hurt (he had obviously not meant to say it, and when she didn't respond he thought it meant that _she_ didn't love him), and she had nearly yelled it back at him, causing him to laugh hysterically for ages. Perhaps the moment hadn't played out exactly as she had imagined it in her head, but it had been said nevertheless.

Noah walked out of the bathroom in a towel, and it took all of Rachel's self control to stop herself from pulling him back into bed. She grabbed her clothes and jumped in the shower. When she had finished, she walked out of the bathroom to the smell of pancakes cooking from downstairs. She skipped downstairs and found him setting the table with maple syrup, strawberries and whipped cream.

"Hey, you took your time!"

Rachel stuck her tongue out at him.

"Is there anything I can do to help?

"No, just sit down and enjoy your boyfriend cooking for you, it won't happen often!"

She sat in the nearest chair and he kissed her on top of her head. He dished up the pancakes, and Rachel smothered hers with strawberries and maple syrup.

"We better leave soon. We need to be at school at nine."

"It's only quarter past eight now, don't worry, we will be fine."

They ate quickly and packed up, grabbed their bags and headed out the door to go to McKinley.

* * *

When Puck and Rachel had arrived at McKinley, all of the other Glee members were in the dressing room, getting ready for their performance. Kurt rounded on them as soon as they got inside.

"Why are you so late? Come on, it's going to take me _ages _to do your hair and make-up!"

Rachel gave a little groan as Kurt pulled her away. He shoved her into a chair and began brushing her hair. He smiled a little.

"So, you guys had some early morning delight, huh?"

Rachel choked and spluttered on the water she had been drinking.

"Oh, sweetie, _please_. Your skin is absolutely glowing. You can tell from a mile away!"

He turned the chair around so that she was facing him.

"So no foundation for you then, we wouldn't want to ruin it!"

* * *

The Glee club was lined up near the wing of the stage, as Mr Schue introduced them to the filled auditorium.

"Thank-you for coming everyone, it's great to see so many people here to support New Directions! As you know, we had some success at regionals, which allows us to go to the national competitions in a few months."

Rachel squeezed Puck's hand in the darkness. She knew he got nervous before a performance.

"So please donate to the club, we need your help to ensure that we can go and rock nationals! So sit back and enjoy McKinley High School's New Directions!"

The crowd applauded and the club filed onto the stage. The opening guitar began to play. Rachel stepped forward.

_I'm not saying it was your fault, although you could have done more._

_Oh you're so naïve yet so –_

_How could this be done?_

_By such a smiling sweetheart_

_Oh and your sweet and pretty face_

_In such an ugly way_

_Something so beautiful_

_That every time I look inside_

The rest of the club stepped forward.

_I know that she knows_

_That I'm not fond of asking_

_True or false it may be_

_But she's still out to get me_

_I know that she knows_

_That I'm not fond of asking_

_True or false it may be _

_But she's still out to get me_

Finn stepped forward and sang to the crowd.

_I may say that it was your fault_

_Because I know you could have done more_

_Oh you're so naïve yet so –_

_How could this be done?  
By such a smiling sweetheart  
Oh and your sweet and pretty face  
In such an ugly way _

_Something so beautiful  
Every time I look inside_

_I know that she knows_

_That I'm not fond of asking_

_True or false it may be_

_But she's still out to get me_

The group knew they were kicking ass – the crowd was clapping and singing along with them.

_I know that she knows_

_That I'm not fond of asking_

_True or false it may be_

_But she's still out to get me_

Rachel and Finn began singing in a duet.

_So how could this be done?_

_By such a smiling sweetheart_

_Oh you're so naïve yet so –_

_Such an ugly thing_

_For someone so beautiful_

_And every time you're on his side_

_I know that she knows_

_That I'm not fond of asking_

_True or false it may be_

_But she's still out to get me_

Puck and Rachel looked at each other, both smiling, high on the adrenalin rush of the performance.

_I know that she knows_

_That I'm not fond of asking_

_True or false it may be_

_But she's still out to get me_

The group joined hands as they sang the conclusion.

_Just don't let me down_

_Just don't let me down_

_Hold on to your kite_

_Just don't let me down_

The group began weaving around each other, Puck and Rachel grinning at each other when they brushed passed each other.

_Just don't let me down_

_Hold onto your kite_

_Just don't let me down_

_Just don't let me down_

_Hold onto this kite_

_Just don't let me_

_Down_

_No, no_

_Just don't let me down._

The audience rose to their feet after the last note, applauding and cheering for the performance. The glee club bowed and waved to the audience and ran off stage, in a feeling of post-performance euphoria. Finn and Rachel hugged.

"Great job Rach! We killed out there!"

"We did, didn't we?"

Finn flashed Rachel a smile, and ran off to Quinn. Rachel turned around and saw Noah coming towards her. She smiled and ran into his arms.

"You were great out there, Berry!"

She smiled and kissed him lightly.

"So were you, Puckerman. I love you, you know that?"

Noah smiled and hugged her tightly.

"I love you too, my little star."

* * *

**A.N. - Well, that's it. I couldn't really think of a better way to end a Glee fic than with a performance, and I had to make it of my favourite song! Thanks to all for reviews, story alerts, author alerts etc. You guys have been a-freaking-mazing. Don't ever change ^____^ but please do review the last chapter :D **

**Some last minute disclaimers:**

**I don't own **_**Naïve **_**by The Kooks, or **_**Sweet Disposition **_**by the Temper Trap. Nor any of the other songs that I have mentioned throughout these chapters.**

**I don't own NCIS (did you see my Gibbs reference? I couldn't resist ^____^)**

**And, unfortunately, I don't own Glee, or Mark Salling :( Oh well, a girl can dream, can't she?! ^____^**

**I'll be writing more stuff soon, so please keep an eye out and (hopefully) enjoy!**

**Laters!**

IHeartTennant.


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